Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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288. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of community gardaí allocated to the Garda stations in Ballymun, Finglas and Santry; the overall number of gardaí in the stations; the number of community gardaí in the stations in each year since 2008; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [53326/19]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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The resources provided by Government to An Garda Síochána have reached record levels, with an allocation for 2019 of €1.76 billion and this is due to increase further to an unprecedented €1.88 billion for 2020.  The capital budget for An Garda Síochána has also been significantly increased - a total of €92 million was provided this year, representing a 50% increase on capital investment in 2018. And capital investment will increase further to €116.5 million in 2020.

This level of funding is enabling sustained, ongoing recruitment of Garda members and staff and as a result, An Garda Síochána is a growing organisation.  We now have approximately 14,300 Gardaí nationwide, supported by over 2,900 Garda staff. And these numbers are growing, as part of the Government’s plan to achieve an overall Garda workforce of 21,000 personnel by 2021.

The Garda Commissioner is statutorily responsible for the management of An Garda Síochána, including personnel matters and deployment of resources.  As Minister, I have no responsibility for these matters.  I am assured however that Garda management keeps the distribution of resources under continual review in the context of crime trends and policing priorities, to ensure their optimum use. 

Ballymun and Santry Garda Stations form part of the DMR North Division. Finglas Garda Station forms part of the DMR West Division. Details in relation to the number of Community Gardaí deployed to the DMR North and DMR West Divisions are available on my Department’s website. This information is updated every month with the latest data provided by An Garda Síochána. This information is available at the following link:

Details in relation to the overall number of Gardaí assigned to Garda Divisions and stations, including Ballymun, Finglas and Santry Garda stations, are available at the following link:

http://justice.ie/en/JELR/Pages/Garda_Workforce  

The Deputy may also wish to note that Gardaí around the country and in the areas specifically mentioned by the Deputy are supported by increasing numbers of Garda staff. Details in relation to the number of Garda staff broken down by Division and station are also available on my Department's website at the following link:

The increasing number of Garda staff is allowing the Commissioner to redeploy Gardaí from administrative to mainstream policing duties where their training and expertise can be used to best effect. Taken together, this increase in Garda and civilian staff numbers means a significant increase in operational policing hours nationwide in recent years.

Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Social Democrats)
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289. To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality the number of gardaí assigned to the drugs unit at the Garda stations in Ballymun, Finglas and Santry; and the number of gardaí assigned to the drugs unit in the stations in each year since 2008. [53327/19]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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It is important to be clear that under the Garda Síochána Act 2005 as amended, the Garda Commissioner has responsibility for management of An Garda Síochána and for the allocation and efficient use of Garda resources. This includes responsibility for personnel matters and the distribution of personnel across the various Garda Divisions. 

I have requested a report from the Commissioner in relation to the matter referred to by the Deputy and I will write to him directly when I receive it.